Noun

French

Pronunciation

Noun

Italian

Noun

Lasagna (singular, in Italian; plural lasagne
pronounced [laˈzaɲe]) is both a form of
pasta in sheets (sometimes
rippled, though seldom so in Italy) and also a
dish, sometimes named lasagne al forno (meaning "oven-cooked
lasagne") made with alternate layers of pasta, cheese, and often ragù (a meatsauce) or tomato
sauce.

The word lasagna, which originally applied to a
cooking pot, now simply describes the food itself. Most
English-speaking people follow the Italian usage and use the plural
"lasagne" to refer to both the dish and the pasta, but Americans
commonly use the singular "lasagna". For example,
"Weird Al" Yankovic (an American singer and songwriter) used
this spelling for his song "Lasagna",
which is as a parody of "La
Bamba".

A variant is Lasagne verde (green lasagne) which
is the normal egg pasta with spinach added. Other variations
include vegetarian or seafood versions of the dish. This concept is
acknowledged by the writers of the Seinfeld episode
called "The Butter
Shave", in which "Vegetable Lasagna" was the nickname given by
Elaine
Benes to the airline passenger next to her.

Origin

Although the dish is generally believed to have
originated in Italy, the word
"lasagna" is derived from the Greek word
λάσανα (lasana) or λάσανον (lasanon) meaning "trivet or stand for a
pot", "chamber pot". The word was later borrowed by the Romans as
"lasanum" to mean cooking pot. The Italians then used the word to
refer to the dish in which what is now known as lasagne is made.
Another theory suggests that lasagna might have come from Greek
λάγανον (laganon), a kind of flat sheet of pasta dough cut into
stripes.

The recipe was featured in the first cookbook
ever written in England, leading to an urban legend that the dish
originated in the British Isles. The claim is dubious, due to the
much earlier Roman use of
"lasanum", and the Italian embassy in London particularly
speaks out against such theories.